Alfred is forecast to make landfall near Brisbane, the capital of Queensland and Australia’s third largest city.

Millions of residents along Australia’s eastern coast are bracing for the arrival of a very slow-moving storm, the strongest tropical cyclone to threaten the region in more than 50 years. Tropical Cyclone Alfred is expected to make landfall late Friday or early Saturday as a Category 1 cyclone,

The area covered by the Cyclone Alfred warning zone stretches approximately 450-500 km along the east coast of Australia, from Double Island Point in Queensland to Ballina in New South Wales.

Brisbane airport was closed as the centre of Alfred is expected to cross the coast very early Saturday morning, most likely between Noosa and Coolangatta of Queensland accordinng to Australia's Bureau

Australia’s east coast is bracing for tidal surges, intense rainfall, strong winds and flooding as a cyclone is expected to veer toward the country’s third-biggest city.

Weather experts are predicting it will cross the coast early on Friday morning with damaging wind gusts, storms, and heavy rainfall.

SYDNEY: Communities across southeast Queensland and northeast New South Wales (NSW) are preparing for the first tropical cyclone to make direct landfall, forecast to be on Thursday, in the region since two other similar rare cyclones hit the part of the two Australian states in 1974.

But while authorities have been warning residents to stay indoors as Cyclone Alfred approaches, die-hard surfers have been throwing caution to the increasing wind. "This is what we look forward to," said Jeff Weatherall as he waited for a jet ski to pick him up from Kirra beach and carry him into the big waves.